Bill Text: NJ A2153 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires Secretary of State to set standards for certification of electronic voting machines; permits voting machine examiners to request certain information and consults with experts as necessary.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-02-11 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly State Government Committee [A2153 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-A2153-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman CAROLINE CASAGRANDE
District 12 (Mercer and Monmouth)
SYNOPSIS
Requires Secretary of State to set standards for certification of electronic voting machines; permits voting machine examiners to request certain information and consult with experts as necessary.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the examination of voting machines and amending R.S.19:48-2.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. R.S.19:48-2 is amended to read as follows:
19:48-2. Any person or corporation owning or being interested in any voting machine may apply to the Secretary of State to examine such machine. Before the examination the applicant shall pay to the Secretary of State an examination fee of four hundred fifty dollars ($450.00). The Secretary of State within a period of thirty days shall examine the machine and shall make and file in the office of the Secretary of State his report of the examination, which report shall state whether in [his] the Secretary of State's opinion the kind of machine so examined can be safely used by the voters at elections under the conditions prescribed in this subtitle. If the report states the machine can be so used, it shall be deemed approved, and machines of its kind may be adopted for use at elections as herein provided. The Secretary of State shall promulgate regulations regarding the standards for electronic voting machines to be examined under this section.
Before making such report the Secretary of State shall require the voting machine to be examined by three examiners [to be] that the Secretary of State has appointed for such purpose [by him], one of whom shall be an expert in patent law and the other two mechanical or computer experts, and shall require of them a written report on such machine, which the Secretary of State shall attach to [his own] the Secretary of State's report on the machine. The examiners shall have the authority to require that the applicant for examination provide such information on the voting machine as the examiners deem necessary to conduct a thorough and independent review of the machine. In the case of an electronic voting machine, the examiners shall determine whether the machine meets the standards for electronic voting machines promulgated pursuant to this section. The examiners may, at their discretion, seek advice from individuals with expertise in voting systems and voting technology to assist the examiners in their report. The costs of consultation with such individuals shall be paid by the Secretary of State. Each examiner shall receive one hundred fifty dollars ($150.00) [for his] as compensation and expenses in making an examination and report as to each voting machine the examiner has examined [by him] from and out of the examination fee of four hundred fifty dollars ($450.00). Neither the Secretary of State nor any examiner shall have any pecuniary interest in any voting machine. When the machine has been so approved, any improvement or change that does not impair its accuracy, efficiency, or capacity, shall not render necessary a re-examination or reapproval thereof. Any form of voting machine not so approved cannot be used at any election.
The certificate of approval, or a certified copy thereof, shall be conclusive evidence that the kind of machine so examined complies with the provisions of this subtitle, except that the action of the Secretary of State in approving such machine may be reviewed by the Superior Court in a proceeding in lieu of prerogative writ.
(cf: P.L.1953, c.19, s.58)
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
Under current law, when a person or corporation owning or being interested in any voting machine would like a voting machine to be certified for use in New Jersey, the Secretary of State appoints a committee of three examiners to make a written report to be attached to the Secretary of State's own report on the voting machine.
This bill requires the Secretary of State to promulgate regulations regarding the standards for electronic voting machines to be examined for certification, and requires the examiners to determine if an electronic voting machine meets such standards for certification. The bill gives the examiners the authority to require that the applicant for examination provide information on the voting machine that the examiners deem necessary to conduct a thorough and independent review of the machine. Additionally, the bill provides that the examiners may, at their discretion, seek advice from individuals with expertise in voting systems and voting technology to assist them in their report. The costs of consultation with such individuals would be paid by the Secretary of State.
